Original 1951 McCall's Pattern No. 1665 - Women's and Misses' Apron with Tulip Appliqué Trim

Original 1951 McCall's Pattern No. 1665 for a gathered apron with a color-blocked skirt and tulip appliqué trim, designed for women's and misses' kitchen wear, made as a half apron or a bib apron with crossed suspender straps. One Size. Uncut but not factory folded, 16 of 16 pieces, with both uncut transfers included; the envelope is worn and has been professionally repaired.

Quick Facts

• Pattern Number: McCall's No. 1665
• Year: 1951; promoted in catalog appearances from January 1952 to December 1953 (McCall's Economy Group catalog, January 1952, Page 247; McCall catalog, December 1953, Page 668)
• Garment: Women's and Misses' Apron with Tulip Appliqué Trim (3 Views), with 2 Transfers
• Size: One Size
• Condition: Uncut but Not Factory Folded, 16 of 16 Pieces; 2 Uncut Transfers; Envelope Worn and Professionally Repaired with Lineco Acid-Free Archival Tissue and Acid-Free Adhesive

Design

McCall's 1665 builds its full, gathered skirt from four horizontal bands, front and back, so the apron can be pieced in blocks of color with a row of tulips appliquéd across one band. View A is the half apron, without a bib: lime green, rose, lime green, and blue bands on a waistband with sash ties, with blue tulips set into the lower lime band. View B adds a bib, cut in three sections with a facing and held up by suspender straps that cross in the back; in yellow, it carries a black band of yellow tulips near the hem, a black bib panel with a single tulip, and single-fold bias tape trim. View C is the bib apron in a print, with tulips in several colors appliquéd across a band (each color takes a 3" x 16" piece, or ⅛ yard). A pocket is included. Sixteen pattern pieces (waistband, tie string, four skirt front and four skirt back sections, pocket, three bib sections, bib facing, and suspender strap) and two Electric Blue transfers, which McCall promised would stamp on both dark and light material. View A takes about 2⅜ yards in three colors of 35" fabric; Views B and C take 1½ yards of 35" fabric plus 1⅛ yards of contrast.

A Moment in Fashion History

Tulips were everywhere in early 1950s home decorating, and McCall's 1665 puts them on an apron the way a quilter would: in bold color blocks, appliquéd in a row. Piecing the skirt from bands made the apron a good use for remnants, and it let the sewer choose between a cheerful color-blocked half apron for serving and a full bib apron, its straps crossed in the back, for real work in the kitchen. The design stayed in McCall's catalogs for at least two years: it appears in the January 1952 Economy Group catalog on page 247, and again in the December 1953 catalog on page 668, beside McCall's 1641, Short Aprons for Mother and Daughter.

Illustration

The envelope front and back are shown as scanned, framed on our blue mat without retouching, so the artwork appears in its true color and condition. View A is shown in color-blocked bands of lime, rose, and blue, View B in yellow and black with a single tulip on the bib, and View C in a polka-dot print with multicolored tulips, with a line drawing showing the crossed straps in back. We've also included page 247 of McCall's January 1952 Economy Group catalog and page 668 of the December 1953 McCall catalog.

Connections

On page 668 of the December 1953 McCall catalog, this tulip apron shares the page with McCall's 1641, Short Aprons for Mother and Daughter. Both make the apron a showcase for handwork: here a row of tulips appliquéd across a band of the skirt, there a contrast panel worked in cross-stitch or Swedish huck weaving. See McCall's 1641 Short Aprons for Mother and Daughter.